Christchurch mosque attacks: Body of Pakistan victim Ahmed returned home
Relatives and neighbours attend the funeral for Syed Areeb Ahmed, who was killed in the March 15 Christchurch mosque attack in New Zealand, in Karachi, Pakistan on March 25, 2019.
The body of a 26-year-old Pakistan national Syed Areeb Ahmed, who was among the 50 worshippers killed during attacks on mosques in New Zealand, arrived at an airport in the southern port city of Karachi.
On March 25, his sobbing father Syed Ayaz Ahmed, family members and government officials received the body of Syed Areeb Ahmed, who was among the nine Pakistan nationals killed on March 15 in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Ahmed was an only son who had immigrated to New Zealand for work, according to his uncle Muhammad Muzaffar Khan.
Last week, Pakistan observed a day of mourning for the victims and honoured another Pakistani, Naeem Rashid, who died along with his son after trying to tackle the gunman.
TMC forms alliance with Kamal Haasan’s party
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Makkal Needhi Maiam president Kamal Haasan and State Finance Minister Amit Mitra during a meeting, at State Secretariat in Kolkata on March 25, 2019.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said her party, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), has forged an alliance with actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan’s ‘Makkal Needhi Maiam’ for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Mr. Haasan, who flew down to Kolkata on March 25 afternoon, had an hour-long meeting with Ms. Banerjee before the decision was announced.
Pope travels to Loreto shrine to sign youth document
A yellow and green jersey is thrown to the Pope Francis as he waves to the faithful during a visit to the Shrine of Our Lady of Loreto on the feast of the Annunciation, in Loreto, Italy on March 25, 2019.
Pope Francis has travelled to a major Italian pilgrimage site dedicated to the Virgin Mary to sign a new document dedicated to today’s youth.
Francis celebrated Mass on March 25 in Loreto’s cathedral and then signed the document in private. It will be translated and released in the coming weeks or months, providing Francis’ take on the October 2018 meeting of the world’s bishops on ways to better minister to today’s young people.
Pope Francis greets faithful upon his arrival at Loreto's cathedral, central Italy on March 25, 2019.
The meeting was dominated by discussion about ways to better welcome gays into the church, give women a greater say in decision-making, and manage the sex abuse scandal.
The pope said on March 25 he chose Loreto, which claims to be the site of Mary’s home, to sign his document because it is the “house of the youth.”
Gaza rocket strikes home in central Israel, 7 wounded
A police officer inspects the damage to a house hit by a rocket in Mishmeret, central Israel on March 25, 2019.
An early morning rocket fired from the Gaza Strip demolished a house in central Israel on March 25, wounding seven people and prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to cut short a trip to Washington. The military quickly mobilized troops and called up reserves, setting the stage for a potential major conflagration shortly before Israel’s upcoming elections.
The rocket destroyed a residential home in the farming community of Mishmeret, north of the city of Kfar Saba, wounding six members of a family. The Magen David Adom rescue service said it treated seven people overall, including two women who were moderately wounded. The others, including two children and an infant, had minor wounds.
Last day for filing of nominations in Andhra Pradesh
Ch Babu Rao, the Left candidate for Vijayawada Central Constituency, takes out a rally before filing nomination in Vijayawada.
March 25 is the last day to file nominations for the poll-bound Andhra Pradesh. While most of the candidates of major parties have already filed their nominations, the EC will accept nominations till evening.
The State goes to voting on April 11.
IAF inducts Chinook helicopters
An all-faith prayer was conducted during the induction of CH-47F(I) Chinook helicopters into Indian Air Force at Chandigarh Air Force station.
The Indian Air Force induct four Chinook heavy-lift helicopters into its fleet in Chandigarh.
In a series of tweets, the IAF said, Chinook is a heavy lift, tandem rotor helicopter which serves armed forces of 19 countries. It is a multi-role platform and is used for the transport of troops and material among other roles.
Kirsten Gillibrand kick-starts her Presidential campaign
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand takes a selfie with supporters after giving a speech at the kickoff of her presidential campaign, near the Trump International Hotel and Tower in New York.
Branding US President Donald Trump “a coward” who is “tearing apart the moral fabric” of America, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand on Sunday held her first rally for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination outside the Trump International Hotel in New York.
Like most of her 15 or so Democratic rivals Ms. Gillibrand favours universal health coverage, a $15 an hour federal minimum wage and access to university for everyone. Also high on her list of priorities is climate change: an “existential threat.”
She is closer to the political center than her leftist competitors such as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, who are running on ideas like free university tuition.
Embattled May to face Parliament again
An effigy of British Prime Minister Theresa May passes by Downing Street during a Peoples Vote anti-Brexit march in London. Anti-Brexit protesters swarmed the streets of central London by the tens of thousands on Saturday, demanding that Britain's Conservative-led government hold a new referendum on whether Britain should leave the European Union.
Embattled Prime Minister Theresa May is scrambling to win over adversaries to her Brexit withdrawal plan
May spent Sunday afternoon ensconced in a crisis meeting at her country residence Chequers with fellow Conservatives and outspoken Brexit advocates like Boris Johnson, Jacob Rees-Mogg and others who would prefer to leave the European Union without a divorce deal rather than delay Britain’s departure.
The prime minister has found her authority weakened after a series of setbacks in Parliament and her inability to win meaningful concessions from EU leaders who refuse to sweeten the Brexit deal.
British lawmakers will seek to use a vote on the government's next steps on Brexit on Monday to wrest control of the process and try to find a majority for an alternative way forward that would break the parliamentary deadlock.
Prince Charles and Camilla launch first royal visit to Cuba
Backdropped by an image of Che Guevara, Britain's Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, center, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, center right, attend a wreath-laying ceremony at the Jose Marti Monument during their official visit in Havana, Cuba.
Prince Charles and his wife Camilla began the first official trip to Cuba by the British royal family, in a pomp-filled display of disagreement with the Trump administration’s strategy of economically isolating the communist island.
The heir to the British throne arrived in Havana and laid a wreath at the memorial to colonial independence hero Jose Marti, near massive portraits of socialist revolutionary icons including guerrilla fighter Che Guevara.
The next two days include visits to historic sites, a solar park, organic farm and biomedical research centre, and a meeting with entrepreneurs, cultural gala and dinner with President Miguel Diaz-Canel.
Cyclone Idai kills 656 in Africa
People wade through flood waters in a rural neighborhood affected by Cyclone Idai on March 24, 2019 in Buzi, Mozambique.
Cyclone Idai made landfall the night of March 14 near the port city of Beira, bringing heavy winds and rains. Two major rivers, the Buzi and the Pungue, burst their banks, submerging entire villages and leaving bodies floating in the water.
Mozambique's death toll rose to 446 from 417, a government minister said on Sunday. In Zimbabwe, U.N. agencies have given different tolls of 259 and 154, while in Malawi 56 people died in heavy rains ahead of Idai.
